The present invention relates to a cleaning device in general, and particularly to a cleaning device for cleaning phonograph records and similar objects.
There are already known various constructions of cleaning devices for use in cleaning phonograph records and similar objects, such devices being either permanent attachments of the record player, in which event the phonograph record may be cleaned during each playing thereof, or such devices may be separate units which are applied to the phonograph record only from time to time so as to remove accumulated dirt and dust therefrom. In the latter case, the cleaning device may be applied to the phonograph record when the latter is supported on the turntable of the record player, and possibly rotated, or the cleaning operation may be performed without resorting to the use of the record player for supporting the phonograph record.
In all of the heretofore known cleaning devices of the latter type, that is devices which are applied to the phonograph record only at intervals, the cleaning device, whatever configuration it may have, is thoroughly wetted by a cleaning agent or solvent when such a device is used for wet cleaning of the phonograph record. This wetting may be achieved either by immersing the cleaning device into a body of the cleaning liquid, by pouring the cleaning liquid over the cleaning device, or by contacting the cleaning body with a sponge, cloth or a similar porous body soaked in the cleaning agent.
The disadvantage inherent to such cleaning devices known to the prior art is that they do not provide for controlled wetting of the cleaning body. Therefore, the cleaning body will usually contain an excess amount of moisture which may drip off the cleaning body and soil the environment. However, even in the event that the moistening or wetting takes place by contacting the cleaning body with the sponge or cloth soaked in the cleaning agent, which may avoid the problem of dripping, an excessive amount of moisture will be present in the cleaning body, so that too much of the cleaning agent will become deposited on the phonograph record during the cleaning operation and particularly in the record grooves provided on the two faces of the phonograph record. This, of course, is very disadvantageous, not only because of the fact that more than the necessary amount of the cleaning agent is needed for cleaning the phonograph record, but especially because of the fact that the quality of reproduction suffers due to the presence of the cleaning agent, or the residue remaining after the evaporation of the cleaning agent, in the grooves of the phonograph record.